The price of a pint will soar by 50p after a 'brutal' start to the year, a leading landlord has warned.
Chairman of City Pub Company Clive Watson said 'pub inflation' was running at about 10 per cent following 'non-existent' sales earlier this month.
He said firms were taking a 'whacking' as costs soar for beer, energy, food and labour as they battle inflation, the pandemic and supply chain problems.
But the father of Made in Chelsea stars Lucy and Tiffany said it was 'fantastic' sales are 'getting to levels of a normal January'.
It comes amid fears of the damage a future of hybrid working will have on the hospitality industry.
Bosses raised fears staff only coming into offices in the middle of the week would hollow out trade.
Friday is a crucial day for businesses as office workers spill from work into city centre pubs and bars.
Chairman of City Pub Company Clive Watson (pictured) said 'pub inflation' was running at about 10 per cent following 'non-existent' sales earlier this month. Pictured: Lucy and Tiffany with their father
He said firms (pictured, The Phene in Chelsea which his firm owns) were taking a 'whacking' as costs soar for beer, energy, food and labour as they battle inflation, the pandemic and supply chain problems
Mr Watson said a major beer supplier had told the chain at the start of the year that beer prices were going to go by 7 per cent.
He blasted the 'whacking' increase amid 'soaring' energy prices and increases in food and labour costs that were also starting to bite.
He also said 'pub inflation' was running at about 10 per cent, and the price of a pint was now increasing by 40p to 50p.
He added on the Today programme: 'The first week [of January] was pretty brutal to be honest, and it was very, very quiet even for a normal January. Sales just almost non-existent.
But the father of Made in Chelsea stars Lucy and Tiffany (pictured) said it was 'fantastic' sales are 'getting to levels of a normal January'
'And suddenly about ten days ago it was almost like someone flicked a switch and suddenly sales started building up and the momentum started building up which is great, and over the last three or four days we are now getting to levels of a normal January which is absolutely fantastic.'
Speaking about more people returning to the office, Mr Watson went on: 'I think we've got to remember about people going back to the office, it's not just to help the hospitality industry, it's to help everyone in the office.
'Every junior staff needs a mentor, every junior staff needs to be able to go to someone in the office to help with their roles, and they can't really do that from home. I think it builds up that culture within a business as well.
'I think you can bring in a bit of flexibility to the office-work life, but it's very important for office workers' mental well-being as well to be back in the office and working alongside their colleagues.'
But Deputy General Secretary at the Trades Union Congress Paul Novak said 'the language' around working from home has been 'unhelpful'.
He said: 'It is important to remember that millions of people have been working in the workplaces as normal during the pandemic, if you work in a supermarket, or a care home or in a factory.
'But there will be significant numbers of people starting to return to the office from this week, and I think what's really important actually is rather than blanket mandates or unhelpful language about shirkers getting back to the office, employers have sensible conversations with their staff about how that return will happen, over what timescale, people's preferred patterns of working and crucially what can employers do to give people confidence that their workplace is Covid secure and is as safe as possible.'
Mr Watson (pictured) said a major beer supplier had told the chain at the start of the year that beer prices were going to go by seven per cent
Business leaders over the weekend warned a permanent shift to hybrid working would be another blow to struggling pubs, bars and restaurants and shops.
They said 'tw*ts' - those who work part-time from home and only come into offices on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays - threaten a full economic recovery.
Fears were further raised as official figures showed Plan B restrictions hit retailers last month harder than expected - with sales volumes slumping 3.7 per cent.
Clothes shops and department stores were some of the worst hit, with the figure from the Office for National Statistics far worse than the 0.6 per cent drop predicted.
